On behalf of the Sparta High School Scholar Bowl program, I am pleased to invite teams from across Southwest Missouri and surrounding regions to the inaugural Sparta Fall Tournament, scheduled for October 27th, 2018. Our tournament will consist of a minimum of eight games for all teams in the standard 20/20 format, with the following modifications:

Each game shall consist of two halves of ten tossups each, with each correct tossup followed by a three-part bonus.

Correct tossup answers are ten points each. We will not be awarding powers. No penalty will be assessed for interrupting the moderator with an incorrect answer. There are no math computation questions. All tossups are five seconds.

The team that receives the bonus will have five seconds to answer each part. The moderator will prompt after four seconds. Each incorrect bonus part will immediately rebound. Unless otherwise specified in a bonus set, each bonus part shall be ten points each.

In the event a game is tied after regulation, additional tossups shall be read until the next change in score.

Each team shall have one 30 second timeout per half - use it or lose it. Substitutions, scorechecks, and team conferences may occur at the half, prior to overtime, or during any timeout called by either team.

Teams rosters shall be limited to seven players; schools are encouraged to bring junior varsity and “B” teams to compete. Teams may play with fewer than four players, but must have at least two players. Rosters shall be submitted in advance and finalized at registration the morning of the tournament. Players may not change teams during the tournament.

We have secured the Washington High Academic Questionfest (WHAQ III). More information is available at viewtopic.php?f=109&t=21382. At the time the original post was made, this set is also being used at its flagship event December 1st at Washington and at a tournament in January at St Joseph Central. If you wish to attend either of these tournaments, you will not be able to attend our event. Additionally, we are currently limiting the field to 18 teams; this may expand depending on staff availability. Additional teams will be placed on a waitlist and contacted should an opening occur. Teams from outside Missouri are welcome to register; however, because of the MSHSAA sanctioning process, we ask that out-of-state teams register no later than September 24th.

Teams will play five morning rounds, break for lunch, then return for at least three afternoon games. This setup is subject to change, depending on the number of teams signed up. We plan to start the team meeting at 8:30 a.m., with the first round set for at 8:50 a.m. and afternoon rounds slated to begin at 1:30 p.m. With the exception of any playoff games for trophies, we anticipate the last game ending around 4 p.m.

Fee structure is as follows, per school:

First team: $65

Additional teams: $60

Discount for travelling more than 100 miles each way (determined by Google Maps): $10

Discount for providing a working buzzer set: $5 (maximum $10)

Discount for providing competent staff: $5 per staffer (maximum $10)

All discounts are subject to the discretion of tournament officials.

Sparta High School is located on Missouri Route 14 on the eastern edge of Sparta, after the highway splits to the north from Route 125. With few restaurant options in the immediate vicinity, lunch will be available on site for $5 per person. We are pre-selling meal tickets as part of tournament registration. An a la carte menu will also be available.

The tournament is under the direction of Sparta High School Coach Philip Hopkins and veteran scholar bowl moderator Kyle Hill of the Missouri Quizbowl Alliance, an organization dedicated to promoting quality scholar bowl tournaments around the state. We anticipate receiving certification and assistance from their membership. Additionally, we anticipate our tournament to serve as a qualifier for the National Scholastic Championship, sponsored by the Partnership for Academic Competition Excellence (PACE), set for June 8th and 9th in Reston, Virginia.

Field (18/18)Note: field updates in the corresponding MOQuizBowl.com thread take precedence in the event of any discrepancies with this post.
Blue Eye (2)
Chadwick
Clever
Diamond
Eldon (2)
Kickapoo (2)
Lockwood
Pierce City (2)
Southwest R-V
Sparta (can field second if necessary)
Spokane
Strafford
Thayer (2)

Our initial field is full! If we are able to secure enough staff, we will consider an expansion to 24 teams. Given that this is the first year for Sparta hosting, if we expand the field to 24, we won't expand further.

Kyle Hill—Liberty (Mo.) '03—Truman State '07Moderator for hire based in Sedalia, Mo.

Kickapoo A completed the day with a 10-0 record, including their 350-150 victory over Thayer A in the advantaged final to claim the title. Eldon A's 200-140 victory over Spokane in Round 7 allowed the Mustangs to claim third, while Clever was fifth and Southwest R-V finished sixth in (to my knowledge) their first-ever appearance at a MOQBA tournament.

Firstly I am again most appreciative of our tournament staff for helping out this weekend: moderators Phillip George, Jeffrey Hill, William Koch, Dylan Morris, Angela Odom, Julia Scherer, Scott Twente, Scott Walker, and Amanda Wigdon, along with our scorekeepers from Sparta High School. I also want to thank members of the Sparta Culinary Club for preparing and staffing the lunch and snack service that perhaps received the most applause of anyone during the day. I also want to express my extreme gratitude to coach Philip Hopkins for his eagerness to bring quality playing opportunities to teams in Southwest Missouri, as well as SHS principal Gwenda Barton, activities director Larry Brown, and the administration of Sparta R-III.

I'm hopeful that we will return next year to Sparta, and also look forward to even more tournaments across Southwest Missouri. Until next time, I close with the words of my late freshman journalism adviser: Be Safe! Be Smart!

Kyle Hill—Liberty (Mo.) '03—Truman State '07Moderator for hire based in Sedalia, Mo.

Thanks for playing the WHAQ III set, everybody! As the set is not clear, please join the "2018 WHAQ Discussion" private group if you want to discuss the set. (Go to your user control panel, click on usergroups, then find "2018 WHAQ Discussion" and join it)